Seven quotes (and a song) from Shakespeare for New Year’s

New Year’s is about moving forward. Plenty of William Shakespeare’s plays and poems feature moments of redemption, transformation, or resolution—think about the changes that come over Prince Henry in the two Henry IV plays, or Leontes trying to right his past wrongs in The Winter’s Tale.

With a new year approaching, Shakespeare’s words can help us reflect on the past year, plan for the new one, or just impress friends or family with a well-placed quote in a New Year’s Eve toast.

Shakespeare only mentions New Year’s festivities once in his plays. In The Merry Wives of Windsor, Falstaff swears he’ll never be fooled again after he’s thrown into the river while escaping the wrath of Master Ford:

Well, if I be served such another trick, I’ll have my brains ta’en out and buttered, and give them to a dog for a New Year’s gift.

In Shakespeare’s England, gifts were often exchanged on New Year’s Day. The Folger’s collection includes six of Queen Elizabeth I’s New Year’s gift rolls. These enormous documents feature Elizabeth’s autograph signature and list all of the presents the monarch gave or received.

When icicles hang by the wall,And Dick the shepherd blows his nail,And Tom bears logs into the hall,And milk comes frozen home in pail;When blood is nipped, and ways be foul,Then nightly sings the staring owl“Tu-whit to-who.” A merry note,While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.

When “Dick the shepherd blows his nail,” it means that he’s breathing hot air on his hands to warm them—a familiar feeling around this time of year. “Keeling the pot,” like greasy Joan, means to cool its contents by stirring, skimming, or mixing in a colder substance.

On the other hand, maybe it’s just too cold to go out and celebrate at all. Hamlet knows how you feel: